Credit & Charge Card Reviews (6): Flybe Mastercard

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• Lumma says:

  30 Oct30 October 09:25

  I think this is the only rewards card that I’ve never seen in real life and I handle so many card payments at work.

  What I find really odd about applying for Creation cards is that I’m “eligible to apply” for this and the two IHG cards but not any of their other cards. There doesn’t seem to be any logic as why they won’t trust me with an Asda credit card for example

• Mikeact says:

  30 Oct30 October 11:57

  This card? Total utter rubbish.

• Sabby says:

  30 Oct30 October 18:02

  I have had one for a couple of years booked 4 flights from Birmingham to Amsterdam taxes £48 got the all in voucher for my teenagers they changed the date 3 times had no problems.
  Recently booked 6 tickets with voucher to Amsterdam during Easter next year we all got on the same flight bargain price of £48 each for Easter holiday couldn’t beat it from Birmingham

• Chris L says:

  30 Oct30 October 18:06

  I’m a regular Flybe user and this got me thinking: is Flybe a ‘budget’ airline. Certainly, price-wise it’s hard to say as many of their routes have no direct competitor. How do we now define budget airlines? Correct, me if I’m wrong but here are the standard features and how they apply to Flybe:

  1. Budget carriers charge for extras such as food/drink and hold baggage
  Yes, but so do BA and many other ‘major’ carriers, particularly short haul

  2. Budget carriers serve ‘alternative’ airports – e.g. London Stansted, Milan Bergamo
  No, Flybe serve major airports – even LHR now unlike most budget carriers

  3. Budget carriers offer minimal legroom and typically ‘slimline’ seating
  Actually I think I’m more comfortable on a Flybe Embraer than one of the newer narrow body aircraft from one of the major carriers. The Dash 8 aren’t that comfortable, but they are typical of their type when compared to other airlines operating them.

  4. Budget airlines have low-cost operations with fast turnaround times
  No different from any other short haul operation nowadays?!

  5. Budget carriers don’t have business class
  True, but no different from many European carriers, though Flybe has the ‘All In’ fare which includes lounge access etc. There is no ‘priority’ boarding but there’s rarely any point as the aircraft are small.

  6. Budget carriers cater primarily to the price-sensitive leisure market
  Actually Flybe has high usage by business travellers and serves many business-focused routes, e.g. Birmingham – Dusseldorf, Manchester – Paris, London City – Exeter.

  Does the short haul budget vs full service paradigm still exist? I’m not so sure.

  • Chris L says:

    30 Oct30 October 18:09

    I guess the point I’m making is that Flybe should not be excused having a decent loyalty programme because ‘they’re a budget airline and budget airlines don’t have normal loyalty schemes’. Sounds like they’re trying to address this though.

• David Ibbotson says:

  30 Oct30 October 18:33

  I earned 2 free flights a year ago, and despite trying really hard on the web and the call centre over several weeks I couldn’t find any flights. I didn’t place any restrictions I’m my selection not even countries of departure or arrival. So in my view I wasted £20k spending on the card when I could have collected Avios on my BA Amex.

• Chris says:

  30 Oct30 October 19:36

  Hmm .. so spend £3,999 and get.. nothing?

  • Shoestring says:

    30 Oct30 October 19:44

    There’s probably a place for spend £250 & get a free return flight (+ fees) + 2x23kg checked bags, lounge access on both legs, fast pass security, free seat selection (at the front) and a free drink and snack on board. (as per Lewis above)

    As Lewis said, you can always cancel card after that. And as Shoestring says: then get one for the wife 🙂

• Neil says:

  30 Oct30 October 19:43

  As a reasonably regular Flybe user, and Avios collector, I would love to see a like for like comparison of this and card that earn Avios for redemption on Flybe. Would this be possible? My impression is that this card compares very favourably with Avios-earning non-Amex options. However, I am struggling to get my head around all the factors involved in such a calculation.

  • Rob says:

    31 Oct31 October 05:20

    That won’t be happening, for reasons I will reveal on Thursday!

• Lady London says:

  30 Oct30 October 21:25

  “Discounted web fares may occasionally be available at a lower cost (including taxes & charges) than equivalent reward flights“. This means that you may end up being asked for £100 in ‘taxes and charges’ to book your redemption flight, whilst a cash ticket for the same flight is available for £80!

  Same with Lufthansa especially on short-haul within Europe. I thought Lufthansa was the only airline British Airways would envy the ability of to really take the p on outrageous “taxes”… but it seems in their own way flybe is doing it too.

  • Shoestring says:

    30 Oct30 October 21:32

    You would be a confident investor though – Flybe are ripping off the consumer on Loyalty so badly, it MUST be good for the bottom line.

    • Rob says:

      31 Oct31 October 05:19

      It probably isn’t. They are spending huge chunks of money on a loyalty infrastructure, including hiring the new guy from Avios, which isn’t delivering. If your loyalty scheme doesn’t deliver incremental business you’re better off without it.

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